IWF Athletes Commission - Expression of Interest

The IWF are seeking male and female athletes for their new athletes’ commission.

BWL are seeking Applications of Interest (AOI) from all interested GB athletes who wish to be considered for one of these roles.

In the interest of fairness, once all AOI’s have been received, if there are multiple interested parties an election will take place to select a GB male and female athlete who will then be endorsed by the BWL Board and put forward to the IWF.

The Role

The role of the Athletes’ Commission will provide the voice and view of the athlete to each of the current standing committees and commissions. Additionally, they will be solicited for agreement by a majority on all reform and governance documents, and qualification documents created between now and the subsequent election.

• Commissions shall work as required by their assigned tasks; by form of meeting(s) in person and/or by electronic means.
• Members of the Commissions serve as volunteers. They may be reimbursed by IWF for all their travel, accommodation and other justified expenses.
• Commissions shall work on the basis of the decisions and guidelines of the Executive Board.
• Commission Members shall undertake to avoid any conflict of interest during their activities.
• The Commission Chairpersons shall report on the activity and proceedings of their Commission to the IWF Congress and the IWF Executive Board when required.
• Commissions shall develop their communication strategy to provide assistance to the IWF towards effective communication with all international partners and stakeholders of the IWF.
• To each Commission a Coordinator shall be assigned from the IWF Secretariat.

The Athletes’ Commission shall be an effective platform where the views of athletes are represented and the voice of athletes can be heard by advising the Executive Board on matters concerning weightlifting athletes. The Commission shall liaise with the IOC’s Athletes’ Commission and be represented at the IOC International Athletes’ Forum. The Chairperson of the Athletes’ Commission, if not an Executive Board member, may be invited to the Executive Board meetings in a consultative capacity. The Commission shall be accessible and visible at major events and youth events.

The initial commission term will be operational from September 1, 2020 until after the scheduled dates of the 2021 Olympic Games. The election process for the subsequent commission will be included in new governance reform.

Athlete Eligibility

Members of the Athletes’ Commission may be athletes still pursuing an active career or having finished their active careers not more than four (4) years prior to the appointment.

As a minimum eligibility, athletes must be over 18 years of age of the time of application, have a clean anti-doping record and must have represented Great Britain in a least one of the following:

• 2012 and / or 2016 Olympic Games
• 2014 and / or 2018 Youth Olympic Games
• 2016 to 2019 Youth, Junior, or Senior World Championships
• 2016 to 2018 Continental Championships or Games

Application Process

• By Friday 31 July - Expressions of Interest must be submitted to Kath Leonard (kath.leonard@britishweightlifting.org). The EOI must include: Competition demonstrating eligibility, Year of birth, Letter of interest
• 3 – 7 August - An election will take place to fairly select the male and female athlete. BWL are currently working with the British Athlete Commission (BAC) to determine the election process. More details on this will be published in due course
• 10 August - BWL to seek board approval of the athletes selected as part of the election process
• 11 August - Male and female athlete announced
• 12 August – Details of athletes, including their EOI, submitted to the IWF